Overview
The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) is mandated by the UN General Assembly to advocate for the protection of children's rights, to help meet their basic needs and to expand their opportunities to reach their full potential.
Ongoing Projects
UNICEF’s goal in Armenia is: all rights for all children, with no child left out. We work with Government, with national/local organisations, with media and with children and young people to:
• lobby for effective policies to benefit children and women;
• support innovative programmes to improve services for children and ensure sustainability of successful initiatives;
• ensure that the voices of children and young people are heard and they participate in decisions affecting their lives
Health and Nutrition for All Children
UNICEF has been the major international organization providing vaccines to Armenia. To ensure sustainability of immunization and efficient implementation of the National Immunization Plan, UNICEF supports the Ministry of Health in organizing regular trainings for health professionals and carries out awareness campaigns among families and care-givers.
UNICEF and the Government of Armenia have also been working hand-in hand to ensure that newborns in Armenia are breastfed exclusively for a minimum of 6 months. In 1995 UNICEF launched a Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative and in 2004 a Baby Friendly Policlinic Initiative. A maternity facility or a policlinic can be designated “baby-friendly” when it does not accept free or low-cost breastmilk substitutes, feeding bottles or teats, and has implemented 10 specific steps to support successful breastfeeding.
UNICEF also successfully tackles the problem of iodine deficiency in Armenia through universal salt iodization. Iodine deficiency is the world’s leading cause of preventable mental retardation among children. Salt iodization is the most effective and sustainable way to prevent iodine deficiency disorders (IDD) because salt is widely consumed and iodization is safe and inexpensive.
Education for All Children
UNICEF supports and actively participates in the process of reforming the education system of the country and assists in development and introduction of legal and administrative frameworks to backup these reforms. The Government of Armenia extensively uses UNICEF’s expertise in implementation of transition to 12-year education system.
The introduction of Life Skills is one of several education reform initiatives that have been undertaken in Armenia since 1995. UNICEF-supported Life Skills is a shift from a teacher-centered, knowledge-driven process of schooling to one where knowledge, skills and values are seen as interrelated and where students are considered as vital part of a learning process.
About 80 per cent of pre-school age children are not able to attend kindergartens or any other type of pre-school facility for various reasons. In order for young boys and girls to go to school prepared, UNICEF assists to set up centers for parents and children in various communities, where parents learn how children develop, what needs they have at different stages of their life and how to ensure early learning for children.
According to official statistics, there are over 8,000 children with disabilities living in Armenia, many of whom have been isolated from society and are excluded from mainstream education. UNICEF advocates for full access of children with disabilities to education through promoting the establishment of inclusive and child-friendly schools.
To encourage schoolchildren to participate actively in school governance and decision making process UNICEF supported the Ministry of Education and Science to develop guidelines to allow student’s councils to participate in school management. UNICEF also devised the conceptual standards for child-friendly schools to ensure a safe and enabling school environment for all children.
Protection for All Children
For children deprived of parental care UNICEF is trying to seek solutions that would allow them to grow in a family environment. UNICEF has been actively advocating for increased support to vulnerable families that will allow children placed in orphanages to return to their families and will also prevent future placement of children in public care institutions. UNICEF has also successfully introduced foster care concept in Armenia, whereby children are placed with foster parents under conditions when they either have no family or cannot return to their own family.
To prevent placement of children in public residential care institutions at community level, UNICEF supported local NGOs in establishment of community-based care centers for children at-risk, children with special needs and children from vulnerable families.
UNICEF was one of the first organizations to initiate studies into the phenomenon of trafficking in women and children from Armenia. In 2003, UNICEF published a survey into child abuse and neglect. The survey revealed cases of violence and abuse against children in communities, families and institutions. UNICEF has been working hard to disseminate information to parents and children and provide training to teachers, police, social workers, nurses and doctors for them to be able to prevent and respond to cases of violence against children.
By supporting revision of the juvenile justice system, UNICEF has also promoted positive legislative changes including the introduction of alternative systems such as probation for children in conflict with law.
YOUth Can Make Difference
Working for young people and promoting their participation in various activities and projects is one of our priorities. Given that Armenia is part of the region where HIV/AIDS is spreading rapidly, UNICEF is working to educate young people on HIV/AIDS, sexually transmitted diseases and healthy lifestyle.
UNICEF also promotes introduction of Life Skills-based education in upper grades of secondary schools with particular focus on HIV/AIDS and healthy lifestyle. Healthy lifestyle curriculum was developed and piloted in upper grades of 30 schools with relevant trainings and guidelines provided to teachers of those schools.
UNICEF facilitates the introduction of youth-friendly health services into the health system through advocacy, policy development, and capacity building of health care providers and local authorities.
Partners
National Counterparts:
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Labor and Social Issues, Ministry of Education and Science, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Culture and Youth Affairs, State Police, National Institute of Education, State Pedagogical Institute, National Institute of Child and Adolescent Health, National Center for AIDS Prevention, Fund for Armenian Relief, Children of Armenia Fund, “Step By Step” Benevolent Foundation.
NGOs
International organizations
USAID, World Vision, Mission East, Douleurs Sans Frontieres, Save the Children, OSCE, Council of Europe, EU, World Bank, IOM, UN Agencies.
Contact
Mr. Emil Sahakyan
Communication Officer
Address: United Nations House, 14 Petros Adamyan Street, Yerevan 0010, Armenia
Tel: (37410) 58 01 74, 58 05 16
Fax: (37410) 54 38 10
E-mail: esahakyan@unicef.org
Links
Armenia – www.unicef.org/armenia
Global – www.unicef.org
